NFL.com: Cardinals-Steelers Super Bowl rematch is most compelling
Jan 8, 2016, 10:30 AM | Updated: Jan 11, 2016, 8:49 am
(AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Cardinals fans don’t need much research to decide which of Arizona’s potential Super Bowl 50 opponents would bring their blood to a boil the most.
But in case you’re drawing blanks, NFL.com’s Chris Wesseling has got you covered. He ranked the the most compelling Super Bowl rematches that could take place in Super Bowl 50, and atop that list is the Super Bowl XLIII showdown between the Cardinals and Pittsburgh Steelers.
For one thing, such a game would make storylines easy to come by for sportswriters.
Wesseling points out how Bruce Arians again would face the team that “re-fired” him. Todd Haley, the former Cardinals offensive coordinator from their last Super Bowl run, is now in charge of Arians’ one-time Padawan, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. And Larry Fitzgerald would surely treasure an opportunity to return the favor to the Steelers.
The potential matchup isn’t just about the narrative. It would produce quite the entertaining matchup, Wesseling writes.
With the exception of Arizona’s considerable edge in roster depth and pass defense, these teams are mirror images. They each feature a top-six quarterback, a playmaking wide-receiver corps, a dynamic aerial attack and solid run defense. If the Cardinals have been the most fun team to watch week-in and week-out this season, the Roethlisberger-led Steelers aren’t far behind.
Here’s the rest of Wesseling’s ranking of promising to less-than-exciting Super Bowl rematches.
1. Steelers vs. Cardinals, Super Bowl XLIII
2. Patriots vs. Panthers, Super Bowl XXXVII
3. Patriots vs. Seahawks, Super Bowl XLIX
4. Seahawks vs. Broncos, Super Bowl XLVIII
5. Packers vs. Chiefs, Super Bowl I
6. Steelers vs. Seahawks, Super Bowl XL
7. Packers vs. Steelers, Super Bowl XLV
8. Packers vs. Patriots, Super Bowl XXXI
9. Redskins vs. Broncos, Super Bowl XXII
10. Steelers vs. Vikings, Super Bowl IX
11. Broncos vs. Packers, Super Bowl XXXII
12. Chiefs vs. Vikings, Super Bowl IV